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Play and charge your iPod® or iPhone® through this sweet-sounding Alpine CD receiver. Just connect your player to the CDE-121's front-panel USB input, and you can use the rotary controller to search for tunes. And it's no problem if you have a lot of music — Alpine's Percentage Search lets you jump through your list quickly using the radio preset buttons.

More ways to play your music
The CDE-121 will play your CDs, plus discs you've loaded with MP3, WMA, and AAC files. You can also load your files on a USB thumb drive and pop it in the front USB input. The front auxiliary input comes in handy for connecting a Dock & Play satellite radio or another portable player.

Adding on
A set of subwoofer preamp outputs provides a convenient connection for an amp & sub combo or a powered sub, and you can use the subwoofer level control to dial in the right amount of bass. Then fine-tune your sound using the adjustable bass and treble controls. One more cool feature — this receiver works with Alpine's Power Pack, a compact box that hooks up easily to your receiver, boosting its power from 18 watts up to a serious 45 watts RMS per channel.

iPod note: If you're going to use your iPod with this receiver, be sure to check "Details" for specific iPod model compatibility with this Alpine.

Installation Note: This receiver's preamp outputs are intended for subwoofers only. This Alpine won't work with wiring harnesses or OEM adapters that require a receiver with preamp outputs.

Product Highlights:

General features:

CD receiver with AM/FM tuner

built-in amplifier (18 watts RMS CEA-2006/45 peak x 4 channels)

plays CDs, CD-Rs, and CD-RW discs, including discs loaded with MP3, WMA, and AAC music files

detachable face with 1-line display

wireless remote-ready

Audio features:

built-in iPod control

2-band EQ with selectable bass and treble centerpoints

Expandability:

inputs: front-panel USB and auxiliary inputs

outputs: 2-channel, 2-volt subwoofer preamp outputs

Other features and specs:

Why replace your factory radio?

Two good reasons - sound quality and cool features. A new car stereo offers power that's superior to most factory radios, along with more sophisticated tone controls. And most car stereos offer built-in or optional features that add safety and fun to life in your car, including inputs for your iPod or MP3 player, Bluetooth connectivity for hands-free cell phone calls, satellite radio or HD Radio reception, and connections for building an audio system in your car.

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Alpine cde 121

I've been an alpine fan since day one of doing sound systems. Especially their deck and amps. Great deck for the price. I have 4 alpine decks one per vehicle, from DVD deck to this deck and all is good.

Nice, Inexpensive Upgrade

Written By Greg C, Prattville, AL on Sunday, February 17, 2013

"Coolness Factor"

Build Quality

Ease of Use

Sound Quality

Value

For the price, you're not going to get the world and the Alpine CDE-121 does not promise it either. However, what it does promise is an aural experience that is moderately improved over the factory system in your vehicle. After wiring it myself, I was surprised at the quality of the sound I was getting out of the head unit. I could finally hear the single factory speaker in the back door of the Jeep Grand Cherokee I was installing it in and it actually sounded like it had some nice articulation that it just wasn't getting with the original head unit. Even the upgraded Pioneer 6 x9 2-ways in the front doors were sounding better, but sadly, the dash mounted tweeters were now lost in the action. You couldn't hear them that much anyways, even after putting them in there, so I'm probably going to take them out tomorrow. Even the bass and treble controls were a nice change, even though it did take a bit of practice to use them to their fullest. What I was pleasantly surprised by was the clarity even with non-HD radio. Ironically, I could now hear the stations fade in and out, even in the top 90% of reception. One of those tradeoffs they try to mask in the factory radios one could guess.

The only negatives I have about the system are that it doesn't work with Android phones, and the fact that the dimmer isn't used. I may wire the dimmer to the unit's lighting to see if that would allow me to use it after I change the rear speakers tomorrow.

Improved my sound a lot, however..

Written By Raymond, Cerritos, CA on Sunday, January 27, 2013

"Coolness Factor"

Build Quality

Ease of Use

Sound Quality

Value

If I was just to rate the improvement of sound quality, this thing gets 5 stars. For a unit at this price, this thing is great. But after using it for about a year, there are a few things I'm not too happy about. The blue buttons are always lit and they can get really bright at night. I want to listen to my music with the girlfriend in the car at night but the light ruins the atmosphere when you want to be in the dark. This thing would be perfect if it wasn't for that blaring blue light. Second, the buttons feel cheap. Not saying they are cheap quality but they feel cheap.

Another thing that annoys me about this product is the iPod function. If you're like me who has 20+GB of music, it can take a while to get to the song you want. The unit lags a lot when you scroll through artists or albums or whatever. And I mean it lags A LOT. They offer a quick search function but it's still slow and not as convenient as Pioneer's quick search function. (My dad has a Pioneer in his car).

Other than that, I'm pretty happy with this product. Never failed on me.

Pros:Improved sound quality

Cons:Annoying blue light
Lags and can take a while to find the song you want

should have researched more

I'm not happy with the below entry level eq settings. Should have researched furtherOnly have 2 makes it seem like it should be in the sub 75 price range. The usb and aux inputs are the good points. Haven't tested the usb yet. Basic button lay out which is good since I drive a stick and the less buttons the better. Not entirely happy, but I'm content for now.

Pros:Built well, usb and aux inputs, basic and easy layout

Cons:Poor eq settings, only 2 bands doesn't help when I have a poor speaker layout in a single cab truck. I need high highs and low lows. No included remote.

Great Investment!

Written By Danny V, Dallas, TX on Monday, December 17, 2012

"Coolness Factor"

Build Quality

Ease of Use

Sound Quality

Value

Wow what a great purchase! I have a '99 F350 and this was a good match. I researched a bunch of brands and I liked Alpine the best, have a little higher rms and a really good rep. Sound quality is great. Aux and USB input is really convenient. Crutchfield master sheet made install a breeze, just make sure you order correct wiring harness and mounting bracket. All in all great buy for the money!! Alpine Decks all the way!!

Pros:Exceptional Sound
Easy to Use
Simple Install
Convenient Input/Output
Built to last

Best Bang for The Buck

Written By Dave K, West-Central Ohio on Sunday, December 02, 2012

"Coolness Factor"

Build Quality

Ease of Use

Sound Quality

Value

Over the years I have owned several Alpine uints, but had swiched over to Sony for a while ... needing a new unit I went to one of the box stores to check out the new line up of Sony and was very disappointed in the build quality. They seem to cheaping out. So back to Alpine I go... and just as I remember .. solid build quality ... the controls are straight forward, and the sound is great! The radio has great pull. As far as I am concerned you can't go wrong with this unit. (that is if these are the spec. you want) I love the USB mem. port ... 8 gigs of music you won't hear the same song in three weeks. Also, the ladies and gentlemen at Crutchfield are just the best! They will walk you through every option and help you at every turn. ... Bottom line ... if this unit suites your needs ... buy it.

Acceptable

I purchased this unit knowing it was a entry level type unit. That is okay because it sounds and feels very well made. There are sub outs located on the back of the unit and I connected an Alpine Power Pack amp to the speaker leads because there are no RCA outputs for speakers. I mainly use the unit with my Android phone using the AUX source and it works well. I also use an ipod touch in the USB mode and it works well too. My only problem has been using the USB mode with a flash drive, the folder tree you must navigate is a bit perplexing, but I'm counting on this to be my fault. Overall I can reccomend this unit to anyone interested in a entry level head unit for their vehicle.

Plays AAC Files

I bought this to get AAC playback to replace the basic unit in my wife's car and was limited to single DIN. There was no way I wanted to re-import 20GB of music into iTunes to get everything in mp3 format. I keep classical music on one 16GB micro flash drive and everything else on another drive, and listen to weekly podcasts from a CDRW.

Cons:Terrible user interface - tiny buttons that can't be read while driving. Confusing fast forward and track selection buttons. No brightness control for display so it can't be read in bright light and is too bright at night.

CDE-121: bang for the buck

The CDE-121 really gives bang for the buck. The basic controls are simple to use (no car crashes please) but one can go deeper into detailed settings while parked. The volume knob has a neat rubber grip, and though pressing this knob can lead to other settings, it is not too touchy. The digital display is adequate without being too distracting. The USB player works well - if you've never had one you are really missing out. I'll not be burning / mixing CDs for a while. Radio reception better than the other after market player. Installation in my 2004 Ford Escape was easy. Be sure to ask your Crutchfield advisor about the installation kit (frame & brackets) or wiring adapters. It will save you from frustration.

Pros:Good value, great features, easy to use, decent sound, has a USB player !!!

Good value for the money

Good value for the price. I was looking for an Alpine unit with rear usb input, but they don' t offer any. I am a fan of the user interface of the new Alpine models. They seem to be very easy to use. This is my fourth Alpine in the last year.

Pros:Good value, ease of use.

Cons:No rear usb input, no speaker preamp outs. There is a sub preamp out though.

Alpine CDE-121

I am by no means a car "media player" expert. The Alpine CDE-121 had the USB and aux. ports on the front, with decent specs. I wanted something other than Kenwood, Pioneer or Sony. No real reason. I am older and sometimes these new fangled de-vices are difficult to learn. After I played with it for a while, the controls seemed to make sense and it became easy to adjust the sound... etc. The build quality looks good and feels solid. One thing that stands out is the improved radio reception over my old unit. "Opened box" stock. Good value.

Alpine head unit

I installed in my wife's car, very user friendly. She loves it so that means I earned brownie points from her. Easy install. I've used Alpine for years and I have yet to be disappointed. Crutchfield delivered ahead of schedule, very cool!!!

Great sound quality

The sound quality of this Alpine couldn't be beat, it looks great and was a huge upgrade. The only thing I wish it had was an iPod by hand control. It can be hard trying to go down the list of playlists, artists, songs, etc. on the little screen. Other than that, great buy!

great head unit for price

Another great Alpine product....I have an older Alpine head unit in a different vehicle and being familar with the Alpine interface I decided to go with same brand...also a priority was value-based. For the price this is an outstanding value. I would have expected this quality and feature list to sell for 150+ easily. USB port on face is absolutely a dynamite feature. Sound quality is good, although I am only comparing it to crummy oem unit. It also has seperate sub-control, which I plan on adding in the future.

basic but effective.

I just wanted a basic unit that had an aux input and basic familiar easy to use radio controls. This was inexpensive, easy to install and does exactly what I wanted. I wanted this to use with an iphone, but I did not want to use the head unit controls to do so. I was just looking for a high quality unit without extra features I was not interested in.

Slipped right intothe standard radio slot.

I've had this in my 1996 Honda Accord LX sedan for about a month and it is great. I ordered the installation kit and wiring harness but did not actually need either. This was a replacement for a Pioneer unit that replaced the original so there had been a bit of soldering done already. It was nice and worth the money to have a wiring harness color coded the same as the instructions. Although this unit is rated at 18 watts vs the Pioneers 22 watts, the Alpine is has better volume and clarity that the Pioneer with same speakers. The control layout is terrific. The buttons used most are large, well labeled and intuitively placed. The only minor glitch is in using the unit to play music from my mp3 player in the Aux mode, that is from the mini jack output, the volume is very weak, even with the mp3 player, a Sony NWZ-E354, volume all the way up. Using in the mass storage mode works fine. I have not tried the Iphone/ipod mode. I do have an iphone but don't use it for music. Overall this has been perfect for me

Pros:Slipped right into the factory slot. Good sound, easy t use. Well marked and intuitive to me controls.

Cons:Aux via my mp3 player in the mini jack mode has weak sound but I'd never use it that way anyway. The four stars for coolness factor means I don't understand the question.

Satisfied and just what I wanted

I installed this baby yesterday on my 2001 Honda Civic. Took me a few hours though because I'm very ignorant about this kind of stuff. The in-dash kit was a nightmare to work with because it came with unnecessary parts with no instructions on what to do with them and stripping and crimping the wires together was all new to me but that's for another review.

The receiver installation was pretty easy. Learned how to crimp wires yesterday. The instructions are kinda vague but they work. The Alpine CDE-121 definitely improved the sound of my system. All four speakers plus two tweeters in my car are stock and this head unit definitely made it sound so much better. And I thought the stock head unit didn't sound to bad. There is definitely more clarity in my music. It sounds more "full". It offers a lot of bass but my speakers just can't handle that much. (i guess I'll have to add a sub later on). And the best thing is that it doesn't hurt to crank up the volume.

I've only used the iPod and CD function and they're both great. I sadly forgot to plug in the antenna so I can't listen to the radio for now lol

All in all, I'm very happy with the product. My dad had a Pioneer head in his car and I really liked it but I wanted to give Alpine a try since Pioneer and Alpine are very well-known and liked brands and I have to say, sound quality wise, Alpine wins.

Basically Good!

Written By Anonymous, BC on Monday, May 14, 2012

"Coolness Factor"

Build Quality

Ease of Use

Sound Quality

Value

I had a CDE-100 for a couple of weeks before upgrading to this. This deck offers a lot more features for not much more money. The biggest improvement is the USB search function, which the CDE-100 frustrated me to death.

The sound quality is an improvement as well. I found the bass and treble frequency tuning useful, although preset EQ mode is missing.

Now the negatives. The RCA output is for subwoofer only and cannot be turned off like the higher models. This means the output is always mono. This is not great for people looking to install an amp for running stereo full range front speakers.

Another negative is that the tag display line is limited to about 15 characters even with scrolling turned on. Long song titles are cut off at its knees. More curious is that the CDE-100, a cheaper model, supports tag display line up to 30 characters. Come on, Alpine!

Great

Really great stereo for price - exactly what I wanted. USB port makes listening to all my mp3s easy without an ipod.

Pros:Works great, all the features I want, reasonable price, easy to use, setting the clock is intuitive (my last one was a nightmare).

Cons:The USB support is limited to 100 folders, and each folder can contain no more than 100 songs. It doesn't matter how big your thumb drive is, so you'll have to split up your collection into several if you have more than this.

All I can say is WOW!!

Written By Dave B, Tallahassee, FL on Friday, May 04, 2012

"Coolness Factor"

Build Quality

Ease of Use

Sound Quality

Value

Wanted to replace my factory 2006 F150 radio and speakers. First off, CRUTCHFIELD is TOP NOTCH.... This was my frist purchase and it was by far the best company that I have ever dealt with. I originally purchased another brand but after installing it, the buttons were all over the place and wasn't happy so one call to Customer Service and I sent it back and got this Alpine. This was the 2nd to the bottom of the Alpine line but was way better than the middle of the road from another brand. It doesn't get any better than Alpine. The sound was awesome and the functions are a lot easier to use as well. That's exactly what I was after. Crutchfield, don't change a thing!!!! I have to give a thanks to teh Technical Support as well, they were awesome as well. Thanks Crutchfield for an awesome first purchase.

Pros:Sound Quality, Build Quality, easy to use buttons and the Loud Button is cool and it actually does change the sound quality when you switch it.

Cons:Only thing I miss is the Alpine Green buttons. Mine is Blue/Red..... If this is actually a con.......

Alpine-CDE-121

Cons:A little vague on installation instructions. A missing five mm screw on rear of unit and the proper adapter to fit 99 Miata correctly. I engineered my way around this and the unit is mounted securely.

Awesome Sounds

I've always wanted an Alpine receiver, I ordered this one and it was shipped super fast through UPS. I installed it myself and the toughest part was taking the dash apart in my 2003 Dodge Dakota. Once I had the wiring done and everything was back in place I turned the receiver and it was awesome, the sound was great even with stock speakers. I just couldn't believe the difference in sound with another stereo. Now I'm researching speakers for the doors, I'm sure it'll be even better once I've changed them out. :))

Pros:Easy install, easy wiring diagram.

Cons:Once the i-pod is connected you have to control it through the stereo and not the device.

Ford Ranger

Excellent Unit. Easy Controls. Great Sound improvement. Very easy to install in my 97 Ranger. Love the ipod controls on the unit. You will need a jailbroken ipod to retain controls on the ipod via USB plugin however.